CalPERS drops China, Russia ban

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System said it would no longer prohibit its managers from investing in China, Russia, Pakistan, Colombia and Egypt.

CalPERS, the largest U.S. public pension fund with $245 billion in assets, had kept those countries off-limits based on their rankings in a survey of the suitability of emerging markets for investors.

Now, CalPERS said, managers will use a set of principles to determine whether to invest in companies in those countries.

“This is a much better approach than the one-size-fits-all approach,” said Steve Cooney, who represents California Treasurer Bill Lockyer on the CalPERS board.